It’s true. Teachers in K-6 need to prepare students for STEM and engineering careers that don’t exist yet. The solution? Focus on gifting our younger students with a broad range of inquiry experiences and collaborative know-how, writes STEM education expert Anne Jolly.
What improves achievement by an average 11 percent, increases appropriate social behavior, improves students’ attitudes, and reduces stress? Social Emotional Learning. Author-educator Marilee Sprenger shares brain-wise strategies to blend SEL into your everyday practice.
Small Group Instruction / Two Teachers in the Room
by Elizabeth Stein · Published 12/05/2018 · Last modified 12/04/2019
Co-teaching/UDL coach and NBCT Elizabeth Stein makes the case for small group instruction being the very thing to engage co-teachers in co-designing accessible, meaningful learning and effective outcomes for everyone in inclusive classes. See: benefits for learners.
Assessing Reading / Create Compose Connect
by Jeremy Hyler · Published 12/04/2018 · Last modified 11/27/2019
We want to help our students discover the joys of reading, writes 7th grade ELA teacher Jeremy Hyler. We also need to track their progress as readers. Check out some ways that Hyler assesses reading without committing “readicide,” using book websites, trailers and more.
Reading / The Unstoppable ML Teacher
by Valentina Gonzalez · Published 12/02/2018 · Last modified 11/27/2019
Whether a student is an English learners or native English speaker, the strategies EL specialist Valentina Gonzalez offers will provide support for middle graders who are struggling to read text on grade level. Insight: Often we must help unlock the new language.
Make the most of those minutes of fragmented class time that testing schedules, assemblies and pre-holiday half-days can create. Megan Kelly shares some of her own cross-curricular ideas to promote fun and active learning whether you have five minutes or five hours to fill.
When it comes giving students feedback, our approach can be formal or informal, low-tech or high-tech, writes teacher educator Curtis Chandler. The important thing is that we are constantly observing and offering guidance. As always, Curtis shares lots of practical tips.
Executive Function / It's Not Easy Being Tween
by Cheryl Mizerny · Published 11/19/2018 · Last modified 02/17/2024
Drawing on her special education background, ELA teacher Cheryl Mizerny works to build kids’ executive function skills. Here she offers techniques to help strengthen what she considers the most crucial skills for middle schoolers: task initiation, organization, and time management.
Create Compose Connect / Literature Circles
by Jeremy Hyler · Published 11/07/2018 · Last modified 12/04/2019
Jeremy Hyler found Harvey Daniels’ classic Literature Circles inspiring, but was left wondering how he could get his seventh graders to continue discussing books outside of class with the energy of book club members. Here’s how he took circles online with digital tools.
International Mindedness / Wide Open Learning
by Megan Kelly · Published 10/28/2018 · Last modified 11/25/2019
Having taught internationally since 2003, Megan Kelly loves to share her experience and enthusiasm with her students in hope they’ll become more globally minded and curious people. Here she shares strategies she uses in her classroom to open the world up to middle graders.
